Sailor Moon F: Past Lives
by MelMuff
Summary: SerenityxEndymion My own interpretation of the Sailor Moon, starting with the Silver Millennium leading up to the present and ending with Crystal Toyko. A romance between Serena and Darien too. Hope ya like it! Enjoy!
1. Introduction

**Sailor Moon F: _Past Lives_**

_("F" means "Fairytale")_

**By: **_Melanie Monika Ouimet (aka MelMuff, Sailor  
Violet, Empress Alena, & The Singing Scout)_

**Rating: **_PG_

**Season: **_Silver Millennium_

**Genre: **_Romance/General_

**Date**:_ May 11, 2002_

**Disclaimer:** Before I delve into the author's notes, I must first put up this disclaimer. It's the same as always! I don't own Sailor Moon! Blah, blah, blah! All the characters belong to Naoko Takeuchi, Kodansha, DiC, Cloverway, and to any other related companies with rights to Sailor Moon and I'm just borrowing them blah, blah, blah... LOL Well, that's it for the disclaimer! Now please go read my author's notes and then the story! But please read the author's notes cuz it's very important to read the warning. Afterwards, I look forward to reading your reviews so please review my story and be honest too. I will accept criticism but no flames please. Say what's truly in your heart in a review, please? The same goes for any comments as well. I'd really appreciate it, okay? Thanx!

**Story Introduction:** Haven't you always wondered such things like how Serenity and Endymion fell in love during the era of the Silver Millennium? What happens after Sailor Stars? How did Crystal Tokyo come to be and how did Serena and Darien become rulers of it? What became of Rini? And what happened later on in the future? In this story, I'm basically giving the answers to these burning questions and more by telling my own rendition or version of what, we didn't know, happened while trying to give people a sensual love story at the same time. Yes, I also plan to make this a love story for all those Serena and Darien fans out there. I'm among one of them. Plus, you're getting an inside look at how I think they fell in love in the first place. But for those of you, who prefer the other scouts or other people to fall in love for such pairing as Rini & Helios, Luna & Artemis, Raye & Chad, Amy & Greg, etc., I will add those in as well. They just won't be that in-depth or not too much detailed. And don't worry! Mina and Lita will have someone as well. They just won't be Prince Endymion's generals. Sorry! I have my reasons why though. Read on to find out what they are. Anyway, I've already been planning this story for nearly 2 years now and I finally have the time to sit down and start writing it up. But still, since this is a huge fic I'm writing, don't expect it to be done anytime soon and updated too often. I can only update it when I have the chance, which may be a few days to a few weeks or even months since it's going to be very long and I'm writing other fics, presently. The whole story will be called Sailor Moon F with the "F" standing for "Fairytale" then dividing it into 3 subsections with subtitles sorta making it like a trilogy. The first part explaining their lives during the Silver Millennium will be called "Past Lives" with the second section being called "Second Chances" and the last part being called "Future Finale". Though, the titles may be subject to change if I choose to do so. "Past Lives" supposedly takes place during the Silver Millennium mainly in the Moon Kingdom and Earth. "Second Chances" takes place in the present after Sailor Stars but not without quickly backtracking to the childhood of all the scouts and Darien before hand. And "Future Finale" takes place in Crystal Tokyo leading up to the end. "Past Lives" will be the first section available, revealing how Serenity and Endymion fell in love while filling in other important events as well. But remember that this is not how the actual story goes; this is just my own rendition on it. I'm trying to explain in my own words what I feel like happened so don't take into any accounts that this is the true story during the Silver Millennium. And if people are wondering which version this story is going to revolve around, it is going to be the English anime version cuz that's what I'm familiar with. I do know how the manga goes and some things about the Japanese versions of Sailor Moon but the English anime is what I saw first and is easier to understand. Though I do prefer the manga a lot more cuz it's way more romantic but it's just a tad confusing for me, especially with the storyline of Chibi Chibi and Sailor Cosmos. I don't understand that well at all and I don't want to write a story with me not understand a certain main part of the original story. So that's why I'm going with the English anime version and all the character's names will be like Serena, Darien, Rini, Amy, Mina, etc. And I hope that now explains why I won't have the generals as the true loves of the inner scouts for it would be difficult since I'm sticking with Zoicite as a female. Anyway, sorry for sidetracking there for a moment but I had to clarify that. Now back to explaining the genre of the names. Since there is a large percentage of fans who prefer the Japanese names, I will use them as their Japanese names when they are princesses of their own respected planets which takes place in "Past Lives". But that's the only main time that I'll use their Japanese names. When they are reborn on earth, they will be given the names that are used in the English anime version. And this can be done since some names were already not the same with some of the characters or were just variations like Endymion became Darien and Serenity became Serena so why can't that be the same for the other scouts. In the anime, you never specifically heard their true names except for that they were princesses of their own respected planets. So that's why I'm going to use the Japanese name for them during the Silver Millennium and then when they are reborn, their names will be the English being either different or variations of their original names. So at the same time, I can make both fans, who prefers one variation a name over the other, happy. But in "Future Finale", I plan to use the English names perhaps using the Japanese ones sometimes. I'm more familiar with the English names and so I prefer them more. And I'm telling this to everyone right now so I don't expect anyone to flame me later on about this. That's why it's important to read Author's Notes so ya know the whole story. Sure, in the beginning, I mostly skipped Author's Notes cuz I found them to be too long and but now I regret it cuz I never fully understood the story when they held important info on the story. Now I read them almost all the time. LOL I still do skip them sometimes but rarely now. And another thing that everyone should know is little bit of things from the manga that will be used in the story. Not very big details! Just little things like the fact that's known that Serena gives birth to Rini when she's 22 and that Darien is protected by the sun and perhaps other little details that I can work into the story. People who are big manga fans will know it when they read it. But I will state such things in my author's notes along the way just in case someone, who knows very little about the manga, is confused. And, I must **WARN** people now there will be hentai in certain chapters. "Past Lives" shall not have any hentai at all. Only the other 2 sections will involve a few hentai chapters but there will an option for non-hentai ones as well. I plan to make about 3 or so in total. And I plan not to have many cuz I'm not really comfortable about talking about hentai with other people so I'll have a hard time writing it to bout. Sure I enjoy reading a few hentai fics as long as they are romantic but I do not like discussing about it with people. Anyway, there will be an option presented to people to either read the hentai chapter or read the non-hentai chapter or not provide a non-hentai chapter at all skipping the hentai chapter entirely to the next chapter. Whatever! Now it just sounds too confusing to explain so I'll leave it at that. Anyway, I hope that the story meets everyone's expectations and that everyone will enjoy this fan fic. If anyone has any questions to ask me, e-mail me at this address: Now that's all I have to say for now. Sorry if it was long but well worth it I hope. Now you can go read the Character Introduction if ya want. It's totally up to you, the public and my loyal fans to be. Ja ne!

Character Introduction:

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**Monarchy of the Moon**

**Queen Serenity**

-Princess Serenity's mother  
-blue grayish eyes and long silver hair in the shape of meatballs and pigtails with a crescent moon on her forehead

**King Hyperion**

-Princess Serenity's father  
-blue eyes and short blonde hair held in a short ponytail and has a goatee

**Princess Serenity**

-Princess of the Moon  
-blue eyes and long blonde hair in the shape of meatballs and pigtails with a crescent moon on her forehead****

**Monarchy of Earth**

**Queen Gaia**

-Prince Endymion's mother  
-blue eyes and medium black hair often put in fancy hair styles

**King Darius**

-Prince Endymion's father  
-blue eyes and short black hair with streaks of gray in it and has a mustache and a trim beard

**Prince Endymion**

-Prince of Earth  
-blue eyes and short black hair with no facial hair****

**Monarchy of Mercury**

**Queen of Mercury**

**King of Mercury**

**Princess of Mercury**

-who is Princess Ami  
-blue eyes and short light blue hair****

**Monarchy of Venus**

**Queen of Venus**

**Princess of Venus**

-who is Princess Minako  
-blue eyes and long blonde hair****

**Monarchy of Mars**

**Queen of Mars**

**King of Mars**

**Princess of Mars**

-who is Princess Rei  
-black eyes and long black hair****

**Monarchy of Jupiter**

**Queen of Jupiter**

**King of Jupiter**

**Princess of Jupiter**

-who is Princess Makoto  
-green eyes and medium brown hair held up in a ponytail****

**Monarchy of Saturn**

**Queen of Saturn**

**King of Saturn**

**Princess of Saturn**

-who is Princess Hotaru  
-purple eyes and short black purplish hair****

**Monarchy of Uranus**

**King of Uranus**

**Princess of Uranus**

-who is Princess Haruka  
-blue eyes and short sandy blonde hair****

**Monarchy of Neptune**

**Queen of Neptune**

**King of Neptune**

**Princess of Neptune**

-who is Princess Michiru  
-blue greenish eyes and medium aqua green wavy hair****

**Monarchy of Pluto**

**Princess of Pluto**

-who is Princess Setsuna  
-burgundy eyes and long dark green hair****

**Another Monarchy from Earth**

**Queen Amber-Rose**

-blue eyes and thick long blonde wavy hair ending at the knees

**King Lucius**

-blue eyes and short black hair with a mustache

**Prince Adrianus**

-blue eyes and short blonde hair with no facial hair****

**Other Important Characters**

**Queen Celeste**

-Endymion's grandmother  
-mother of Queen Gaia  
-blue eyes and rose or dark pink hair (the color of Chibi Chibi's hair) about medium length and held up in a ponytail with precise perfect curls sticking out at the end  
-already deceased but this character explains something else relevant in the future

**Queen Rhea**

-Endymion's stepmother  
-first known as Lady Rhea  
-brown eyes and long dark green hair held up in a bun

**Princess Terra**

-Endymion's younger half sister by 8 years  
-daughter of Queen Rhea and King Darius  
-azure eyes and long black held hair together in a ponytail ending at the buttex

**Lady Vera **

-Endymion & Terra's aunt  
-older sister of Queen Rhea by 2 years  
-purple eyes and long dark blue hair held together in a braid ending just above the ankles

**Lady Callista **

-is Endymion's ex-girlfriend _(will be his girlfriend at one point in the story)_  
-is Queen Beryl's best friend  
-sky blue eyes and long pale blonde hair ending in the lower back area  
-she looks frail and weak but she has a strong spirit/don't underestimate her cuz she can be a tough opponent

**Queen Beryl**

-evil queen of the Negaverse  
-is Lady Callista's best friend  
-red eyes and long wavy red hair

**Jadeite**

-one of Endymion's generals  
-blue eyes and short blonde hair

**Nephrite**

-one of Endymion's generals  
-blue eyes and long brown wavy hair

**Zoisite**

-one of Endymion's generals  
-is a female  
-green eyes and medium sandy brown hair held together in a ponytail

**Malachite**

-one of Endymion's generals  
-blue grayish eyes and long white hair

**Luna**

-Advisor to Queen Serenity  
-Guardian to Princess Serenity

**Artemis**

-Advisor to Queen Serenity  
-Guardian to Princess Minako


	2. The Births of Two Royal Monarchs

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Prologue: The Births of Two Royal Monarchs 

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On a calm, cool night, Queen Gaia stood on the balcony, leaning against the railing, gazing upon the endless sea of stars in the night sky. She admired of how they twinkled so brightly. Then she stood upright supporting herself on the railing with her left arm while lowering her right hand to lightly rest on her bulging stomach. Then she looked down to gaze upon her own stomach at the new life that grew inside her. She wondered to herself of how she now had someone to pass her destiny onto. Then she gazed back at the black sky thinking about the few months remaining till she gave birth and imagining how wonderful giving birth was going to be. 

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*~~~A few months later...~~~*

Queen Gaia smiled at the little bundle of joy that she now held in her arms. She was happy that she had someone to carry on the bloodline, but most of all, she had a child to call her very own. He was a beautiful baby boy and the news was already spreading throughout the kingdom about the birth of the little prince. So it was announced that he was born on the third day of the month of August. He had ebony hair as black as the night and deep blue eyes that were alluring every time you stared into them. But on this calm, cool night, the silence was broken as the little prince started wavering his hands around as he began to cry. 

"Hush, little one! Mommy's here! You don't have to cry anymore!" said Queen Gaia as she tried to hush her little one to sleep. Suddenly, with loud booming footsteps, the king approached. The queen was rather upset with this. "Why can't you come in quietly like everyone does? I nearly had him asleep." 

"Sorry, dear! Force of habit! I'll try to remember next time!" the king said as he enters the baby's bedchamber.

Queen Gaia smiled at her husband and said, "Please do! It's vital that he gets plenty of sleep for he's only a few days old." She manages to quiet the baby down. "That's my good little boy!"

"Endymion is a fine lad, ain't he?" said the king. 

"He is indeed!" said the queen. "Time for bed my sweet!" 

"I agree, my dear! Lets go!" 

She looks back at her husband. "Not you, I meant the baby!" Then she tucks the little prince in his crib. 

"Sorry! I seriously thought you were talking about me!" 

"Well, now you know I wasn't. But now, I will talk about you." She gently brushes her right hand against his left cheek. "My dear King Darius, why don't we go to bed now for it's very late?" 

"I couldn't agree more, my darling!" Then he intertwines his hand with the other hand at her side. "My dear, dear Queen Gaia!"

Queen Gaia frees her hand from his. "But before we go, I would like to sing a lullaby to Endymion. Go on without me! I'll see you back at our bed chambers, alright?"

"Alright dear!" King Darius reluctantly agreed and headed towards their bedchambers.

"My sweet little boy! Mommy will now sing you your favorite song." Queen Gaia starts to sing: _"I will tell you a story while you are in bed. You're just a baby but you'll understand. Babies can see things that others can't do. And they teach us something new. In your eyes open wide there's a whole world to feel. All turns around it's a dream or it's real? Welcome to earth now you're part of the show. And I want to let you know. There is a fairytale for you. Hoping your dreams will come true. And if you find a way. Please let me stay with you."_

Afterwards, she finishes the song and joins King Darius in bed.

****

*~~~A few years later...~~~*

A few years went by as Queen Gaia and King Darius raised their son on Earth, and now, there was news that a new royal monarch would be born soon. And just like Queen Gaia did years ago on a calm, cool night, Queen Serenity now also stood on the balcony reflecting on the little life that now grew inside her. She pondered on how much joy this baby would bring to the Moon Kingdom. Her dream, of having a child to call her very own, was coming true. Plus, this baby would be the new heir of the great dynasty called the Moon Kingdom and the future keeper of the Silver Imperial Crystal whom the queen would pass the crystal on to. She put her right hand on her bulging stomach and thought to herself, "Oh my sweet little one! Such an enormous destiny awaits you and important responsibilities are in store for you now. I just hope that you can handle them." Suddenly, a strong pair of arms wraps around Queen Serenity, resulting in, her jumping with fright. 

"Don't worry! It's just me, my dear. And our baby will have to accept it's future if it's to be born into our family", said the king. 

"Oh! Hyperion! It's only you! You nearly scared me half to death. That's not healthy for our baby, you know. But I guess your right about what you just said. It doesn't have a choice if it's our child", Queen Serenity said followed by a sigh. 

"Oh cheer up my dear! We'll teach it our ways and it'll understand so there will be no problem", King Hyperion said. 

"I know! It's just...nevermind! I'm sure it's nothing to worry about." 

"Exactly! Now why don't we go to bed?" 

"I couldn't agree with you more. Goodnight my dear, husband! I love you!" 

"I love you too!" 

They both kissed on the lips and went to bed together hand in hand. 

****

*~~~A few weeks later...~~~*

It was now June 30, Queen Serenity's birthday and the day of birth of the new little princess as well. She had rich blonde hair and beautiful blue eyes taking after her father. And just like many generations before her, the little princess was dubbed with the name Serenity thus becoming Princess Serenity, the new heir of the Moon Kingdom and future keeper of the Silver Imperium Crystal. This sweet little child held great promise that who knew of the enormous destiny that awaited her. And in one week from now, a huge celebration will be held on the moon, honoring the birth of Princess Serenity. And so the story begins... 

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Date: _May 12, 2002_


	3. The Fairytale Begins

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Chapter 1: The Fairytale Begins 

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(Author's Notes: This chapter is a songfic and goes by a song called "Fairytale" written and sung by Neja. She wrote it for her nephew Andrea. It's a song that I really like cuz I got the CD that was very hard to find since Neja isn't a well known artist. It was a fluke accident when I saw her music video for "Fairytale" back in November of 2000 and I just fell in love with the song. "Fairytale" along with another song called "Destiny", by Jim Brickman, are two big inspirations for my story. Check out "Destiny" to be the wedding that Serena and Darien dance to at their reception. Anyway, there are about four different versions of "Fairytale", two of which, I plan to use. The songfic here goes by the slow version and I plan to use the Radio Remix later on in a future chapter. So, to check out the lyrics, hear the song, and view the music video of "Fairytale", go to Neja's website at http://www.neja.net) 

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~~~~~~~~~~

As Queen Serenity holds her baby, she plans to sing a lullaby to Princess Serenity in hopes that this will help her to fall asleep. She looks into the princess' eyes, which teaches her to never lose the joy and comfort she feels when looking at her daughter. These are feelings that she never wants to lose and ones that she wishes her daughter to feel one day. She loves feeling the new joy spread throughout her body every time she looks at her precious daughter. Then she begins to say, "Hush now little one! Mommy's here! Don't you start crying on me now? And since you're so stubborn to go to sleep, mommy shall sing you a song in hopes that you will go to sleep. My close friend, Queen Gaia, taught it to me not to long ago in which she uses to sing to her son, Endymion, to sleep when since he was a baby. She still uses it on him even now. Anyway, here's how it goes!" She begins to sing:

__

I will tell you a story while you are in bed   
You're just a baby but you'll understand   
Babies can see things that others can't do   
And they teach us something new 

As little Prince Endymion sleeps, he experiences a weird dream. His eyes are closed and he hears a sweet melody in the far distance. Suddenly, his eyes snap open and he observes his surroundings. He sees a purple greyish mist surrounding him. Then he sharply turns around and sees a silhouette of a person who seems singing that sweet melody he hears. It looks like a little girl around his age that has long hair in shapes of ponytails. Then he squints his eyes to take a better look at her but can see nothing more than shadow covering her figure. He shakes his head in utter disbelief thinking that this is not real. 

__

In your eyes open wide, there's a whole world to feel  
All turns around, it's a dream or it's real 

Suddenly, Endymion bolts right up in bed panting with beads of sweet dangling off his bangs. Realizing that it was just a dream and he's come back down to earth, he tries very hard to remember what she was singing. He recognized the song as a lullaby that his mother sing him to sleep with at night. But he knows that mysterious person wasn't his mother. Then he begins to wonder who this stranger could be. Why was she singing that particular song? How did she know it? And what was the significance of the song that she was singing? And just what did the dream mean? Then he goes over some of the lyrics in his mind that she sang trying to analyze them.

__

Welcome to earth, now you're part of the show   
And I want to let you know

There is a fairytale for you   
Hoping your dreams they will come true   
And if you find a way   
Please let me stay with you 

After a while, Endymion grows weary and tired from thinking too much and falls back to sleep. But now he experiences a different dream. He's much older and feels like he protecting someone behind him for he is ready to draw his sword. There's another silhouette in front of him with long wavy hair and holding some sort of staff. He makes out that it is another mysterious female when he hears her callous laughter. Then it speaks to him and asks him in which side will he join. Then it tells him to be wise and join her side yet he feels that's it's the wrong thing to do. He has some unknown strong emotion to the person he's protecting behind him. But still, he begins to walk forward until he stops dead in his tracks when he hears that song again. It's the same voice but now she sounds a lot older. He turns around to gaze upon her again and she seems to be calling him back with the song that she's singing. Then the other mysterious figure calls out to him and he looks back at her. Here he stands and must now make a wise decision. He feels like the song strengthens him.

__

So the years soon will pass and you'll grow old and wise  
Some fairytales will be turned into life  
You'll have to find out the right thing to do  
And what burns inside of you  
There will be someone who'll try to change your way to live  
But never mind baby just stand still  
And for this reason I'm singing this song  
Hoping that you will be strong

But he's still torn between the two of them since the angelic voice singing that song seems alluring to him and calling him back but there seems to be a magnetic pull between him and the other shadowy figure that he's trying very hard to dispel. Then he finally finds the strength within himself to break free of it and walks over to the owner of that beautiful angelic voice in hopes of seeing her face to find out what she really looks like since he really wants to find out who she really is. The other mysterious figure continuously yells at him but he ignores her and she finally disappears into the background. He approaches this wonderful stranger but her face is still covered with a dark shadow. Only the shadow upon her body disappears to reveal a beautiful, elegant dress that she is wearing. He takes her hands in his and the lavender mist surrounding them fades away to be replaced with a ballroom filled with people dancing. The shadow covering her face finally lifts only to be replaced by a party mask. He finally gives up on his quest in finding out her true identity and comments on how the lights from the chandeliers beautifully offsets the color on her blonde hair and her soft creamy skin. Then he begins to dance with her as she softly sings to the melody. 

__

There is a fairytale for you   
Hoping your dreams they will come true   
And if you find a way   
Please let me stay with you 

There is a fairytale for you   
Hoping your dreams they will come true   
Life doesn't give the best   
So find the rest in you 

And growing, and growing, and growing, and showing you loving

Suddenly, an explosion is heard from outside. The ground rumbles and the windows rattle. Everyone stops dancing to see the bright light dancing across the windows of the ballroom. Endymion holds her tightly against him. He feels a strong need to protect his angel. 'Wait! Since when did she become my angel?' he thought to himself for a moment. He doesn't really know. But yes, she is his angel that he needs to protect with his life. He has some unknown attachment to her, a bond that he can't explain. But he feels comfort and at peace whenever he's around her, even now. He realizes that he like this feeling very much and never wants to lose it. So he comes to the conclusion that he wants to hold onto it as long as he can never to let it go. Suddenly, everyone starts to scream as the light outside gets brighter and the explosions getting louder. Then all the glass on the windows shatter and break and Endymion tightens his grip on her in order to shield her from this experience. But they both know that there is nothing they can do to stop it so they just stand there holding each other while they await their sealed fate. Her singing can still be heard but sounds nothing more than a mere whisper, as their whole world begins to turn white.

__

There is a fairytale for you  
Hoping your dreams they will come true   
Life doesn't give the best   
So find the rest in you  
In you 

If your love is true 

Now the dream leaves Endymion while he's left to reflect upon the song that she just sang and among other things as well. What was the significance of the dream? Why did she sing it? Why was the song the one that his mother sings him to sleep with at night? Why did he feel such familiarity around her when he was with her? And who she could possibly be? What was her true identity? These questions nagged him in the back of his mind all night long while he attempted to fall back asleep. But no matter how hard he tried to put them aside to get a good night sleep for what was coming up tomorrow so he could deal with it then, unfortunately, with no avail, he failed miserably. And so tonight, his mind was left with these persistent questions demanding to be answered for the duration of his sleep.

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*~~~Back at the Moon Palace~~~*

Queen Serenity smiles once again at her daughter seeing the song that she sang has worked and that her little baby has fallin' asleep. She tucks her little one in bed and strolls off to her own bedroom to sleep and wake up for the upcoming celebration tomorrow. We leave seeing Princess Serenity smiling contently in her crib, as she revisits the world of dreams.

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Date:_ May 12, 2002_


	4. A Foreshadowing Future

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Chapter 2: A Foreshadowing Future

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It has now been one week since Princess Serenity's birth and now a huge celebration was in store in her honor. Royalty and other delegates from all over the solar system came to pay tribute to the new born princess for this is a very joyous occasion since the Moon Kingdom was the leader of all the kingdoms situated in the solar system. It was also the most prosperous and fairest of all.

Princess Serenity layed in a crib at the head of the throneroom centered between two thrones that the rulers of the Moon share. One by one, the guests go up to Princess Serenity to pay their respects and leave behind their gifts for the newborn. The next royalty that step up are from Uranus. Here you see 17 month old Haruka holding the hand of her mother as they visit the sleeping princess. Princess Haruka pokes a finger at Princess Serenity's stomach, who remains silent. Her mother then quickly pulls Haruka's finger away and tells her not to do that and she was, at first, grateful that the princess did not wake up and start crying. Too late actually! The princess did awake, but instead, starts giggling merrily. Haruka's father chuckles slightly to himself and, shortly after, the queen joins in as well. Then Haruka looks up at her parents and gives them a weird look. Then they bestow their gift to Princess Serenity and take their leave. Next, are the king and queen of Neptune with their nearly 16 month old daughter Michiru held in the arms of her mother. Princess Michiru looks very beautiful for taking on the looks of her beautiful mother, especially the fair wavy aqua green hair. From up above in her mother's arms, Michiru smiles warmly at the Princess Serenity with the princess smiling sweetly back. They leave their gift as well and make their way back among the room filled with guests. After that, the monarchs of Jupiter with their nearly 8 month old daughter, Princess Makoto, go to visit Serenity and to leave their gift. And after that, the monarchs of Mercury and then Venus go as well leaving behind their gifts. And you can also see that both queens are pregnant and due to give birth within the same year. Afterwards, the monarchs of Mars visit the princess as well with their 2 month and a half old daughter, Princess Rei and again they leave their gift. The monarchs of Saturn do the same thing as well along with many other princesses, kings, queens, and other delegates. But, however, when a prince visits the princess, King Hyperion with his wife, Queen Serenity, studies them very carefully to see if they are worthy to be a potential suitor for their daughter in the future. Though the queen doesn't approve of this method and thinks that her daughter should marry for love like she did. But truly, many royal couples are not happy in their marriage because many did not marry for love but instead for other reasons such as joining their kingdoms, for money, to gain more power, etc. Queen Serenity was just among a very few whom was fortunate to find love and she loved her husband, King Hyperion, very much and he also loved her in return. But laws are laws and their daughter must marry a prince, a baron, a duke, or someone from a wealthy class and not a mere commoner. The queen had no choice but to hope the best for her daughter.

Next up to the plate is Prince Endymion, the crowned prince of earth. He is 5 presently but will turn 6 on the third of August. He starts to approach the princess while Queen Serenity watches him very intently. He cautiously walks up the steps that lead to the princess' crib and peers in slowly. He gazes at her for a while and then moves closer. He smiles warmly thinking that she looks cute. Queen Serenity and Queen Gaia look at each other and smile because of this and then turn their attention back to their children. Endymion inches ever so closer to her and sets his gift for her down beside her crib. Then he takes a hand and gently brushes it over her forehead as he loses himself in her deep blue eyes. Her eyes seem alluring and he feels like he's immobile and trapped in some sort of trance. Like he's hypnotized. Then his body begins to tingle. It's a feeling of comfort and peace and sorta familiar at the same time that he just can't seem to place. While he tries to sort out these memories and emotions he suddenly feels, his finger slowly descends down Serenity's face and lingers on her left cheek. Then he instantly remembers that these feelings were the same ones that he experienced in his dream last night. While he looks down at Princess Serenity, to contemplate if this also has a connection with her, the princess' tiny arms and hands reach out towards him to grab a hold of his finger that lingered on her face. Because of this, he loses his train of thought and shakes his hand in an attempt to free his finger from her persistent little hands. "Let go!" he whispers. Then he closes in on her, with his face just a few centimeters from her face, saying in a slightly louder voice, "Get you grubby little hands off my finger or else!" She does release his finger only to...the next thing ya know he yells, "OUCH!!!" Then he grabs a hold of his nose with his hands and the room bursts out in fit of laughter. He shoots her a dirty look at Princess Serenity while she just plasters a huge innocent smile on her precious face. He looks around the room and feels like he's just been totally embarrassed. Then he scans the room for his parents. His father just gives at him disappointed look while his mother is laughing hysterically along with Queen Serenity and King Hyperion. Then Queen Gaia sees the look of hurt evident on her son's face so she tries very hard to stop laughing. She puts her hand on her head and shakes her head in an attempt to suppress her vigorous laughter. Then she quickly calms down and comes running to the aid of her son. He runs up to her holding his throbbing nose. She hugs and smiles at him in an attempt to comfort him. When Queen Serenity sees this, she momentarily stops laughing to smile a motherly smile at the beautiful sight she sees. At how Gaia, her dear friend, tries very hard to comfort and console her dear son. After a few moments, Gaia leads her son away from the scene. Afterwards, the laughter dies down but the incident of Princess Serenity pinching Prince Endymion's nose is still the highlight of the evening. Prince Endymion swears to himself that, "I will always remember this Serenity. I will get you back someday when you are old enough to understand what it's meant to feel like `a fool." He promised himself that one day, he'd get back at her and it was a vow he intended to keep.

After Endymion, Prince Adrianus is the next to approach Princess Serenity. He peers into her crib and smiles with the princess returning his smile with one of her own. He tickles her stomach and she reacts in a fit of giggles. Then Queen Serenity focuses her attention the both of them and then is soon joined by everyone in the entire room looking very intently on them. Instantly, you can feel the chemistry between Adrianus and Serenity. This does not go unnoticed by Queen Serenity and Adrianus' mother, Amber-Rose. The same idea enters both of their heads and then they look at each other and then back at their kids. Smiles plaster themselves on both of their faces. They both look back at each other and nod in mutual agreement. Queen Amber-Rose quickly whispers something in her husband's ear. King Lucius nods his head and then his queen quickly trots off towards Queen Serenity to talk. After talking a while, they both agree that Adrianus and Serenity will visit each other often in hopes that they will fall in love and one day marry. They are not officially betrothed but they will be set up in hopes that they will marry each other. But not necessarily to join their two kingdoms since Prince Adrianus and his family just rule a country back on earth, which is far away. It is not as important as Prince Endymion is who is the prince of earth. There are many other princes on earth and the neighboring planets of small and large countries so there are many suitors that Princess Serenity could very well choose to marry. But Queen Serenity sees that out of all the princes who've paid their respects to her daughter, Prince Adrianus is the best candidate so far. Adrianus and Serenity already seem to have good chemistry together and they seem to get along well unlike the incident with Endymion. Plus, they both look so good together too. Adrianus already looks handsome for a five year old while Serenity looks downright adorable and beautiful for a week old baby. Afterwards, Prince Adrianus leaves behind his gift for Princess Serenity, smiles sweetly at her, and takes his leave. He goes back to join his parents among the audience of people there to celebrate Princess Serenity's birth.

Suddenly, outside on a balcony, a mysterious mist appears revealing a silhouette of a person. No one seems to have noticed at who arrived and this mysterious person intends it to remain that way. Finally, the mist clears up revealing a female clad in a sailor scout uniform. With a wave of her staff, her appearance mystically transforms into formal attire. She begins to walk away from the balcony into the crowd of people gathered in the throneroom. She instantly notices that no one recognizes her disguise, which pleases her to no ends. She surveys the room to see if everyone is done seeing the Princess Serenity. Then without anyone looking, she walks up to the crib that holds Princess Serenity. She bends over to look at the dear princess, creating a shadow over her. Serenity shivers and looks frightened. Her baby blue eyes grow wide with fright every second this stranger continues to loom over her. Then the stranger grins from ear to ear knowing the true destiny that, she knows, is in store for the tiny princess. When Serenity sees her smile, she smiles too, thus perhaps feeling that whoever this person is, they are truly a friend and not a foe. Serenity feels safe now and then she closes her eyes and giggles. The stranger bends down to lay Serenity's gift in the crib and quietly whispers in the princess' ear, "I know that you may be too young to understand what I'm saying to you but I'll tell you anyway. This gift I just gave you will become very important in your future. So treasure it always!" She kisses Serenity's forehead initiating it as a blessing. Then she quickly turns to leave but not without giving one last glance back at Princess Serenity, who smiles back at her. Then she continues to quickly dash out of the throneroom to leave. She can't stay long because she knows that the celebration will be ending soon and she doesn't want anyone to notice that she is here. Luckily so far, no one has noticed. But before she goes, she turns to her left side to see Prince Endymion amongst the crowd of people, still holding onto his injured nose. She gently smiles at him knowing he equally plays an important part in Serenity's great destiny. Then she turns away from him and her grin grows even bigger for the knowledge that she alone knows and will keep hidden until the time comes when all will reveal itself. Then the smile leaves her face and she continues to leave but not without scowling at Adrianus first as she passes him. After she exits back onto the balcony and peers back into the throneroom one last time. Then her formal attire transforms back into her sailor scout uniform. The mist reappears and she walks into it. As it disappears again, we see that she no longer remains in this dimension. She goes back to guard the timewarp that she's been assigned to for all of time. Alas, Sailor Pluto will now have to remain alone again for a long time. But she's still happy and a smile appears on her delicate face looking forward to the incredible future that's still to come.

Afterwards, the celebration ends and everyone leaves. On the trip back home, Endymion finally stops rubbing his nose and recovers from the abuse it suffered at the hands of baby Serenity. He thinks to himself for a while and comes up with the conclusion that he will never forgive her for this. So then, he starts to plot his revenge upon her.

Queen Serenity and King Hyperion have the all servants gather up the gifts around Princess Serenity's crib that were left behind for her. While this is happening, Queen Serenity goes to check on her daughter. She's surprised to find a mysterious gift in there and wonders who it is from. Seeing that her daughter is asleep, she picks up the gift and examines it for a while. Then she silently walks out onto the balcony leaving her daughter to sleep a while longer to further examine this mysterious gift left for her daughter. She leans onto the railing and looks at the item in her hand. She determines that it's a locket of some sort. It's in a shape of a golden star with a golden chain attached to it. When opened up, a crescent moon rotates around the center playing the most beautiful music that she's every heard. She begins to think to herself, "It's such a pretty thing with absolutely gorgeous music. I wonder what it is called?"

Suddenly out of nowhere, she hears a mysterious voice whisper the answer to her question. "It's called the Star Locket."

Queen Serenity whips her head around wondering where the mysterious voice came from. Afterwards, she gives up and shrugs it off. Then she stares blankly at the sky. "Hmmm...The Star Locket!" She looks down at it. "The name suits it well!"

****

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(**Author's Notes**: And for those of you, who want to know more about Prince Adrianus, he has blonde hair just like Princess Serenity, his birthday is April 1, and he's 5 years old. And the thing with the mysterious figure being Sailor Pluto. Well! I shall explain more on her later. But for now I will say that it's her job to guard the timewarp. She doesn't have a specific age. Really, she doesn't! I've seen in a few profiles that have stated her age as being 28?? or somewhere in the two thousand's range. So I'm interpreting this as she wasn't born in this time but long before. So then what's become of her planet Pluto in this timeframe? Like I said, I'll explain that later. You'll have to stay tuned for now!)

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Date:_ May 22, 2002_


	5. Happy Birthday?

Chapter 3: Happy Birthday?

It's now August 3 and has been little over a month since Princess Serenity's birth. Today, Prince Endymion was going to celebrate his 6 birthday.

As Prince Endymion casually walked down the hallway enroute to the dining hall, he cheerfully hummed the "Happy Birthday" song to himself. He knew that this was a special day to him and he wasn't going to let anyone or anything spoil it for him. After a few short moments, he entered the dining hall and calmly walked in still humming to himself. Suddenly, out of nowhere, he heard: "Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday to you!" They were singing the melody in sync with his humming; because of it, he quickly stopped dead in his tracks and froze with fear. Behind his back, her could hear someone giggling. He slowly turned around only to be greeted by the site of his own mother, who snickered and waved shyly at him. He sighed with relief while his mother smiled and walked towards him.

"Sorry sweetie! I didn't mean to startle you. Anyway, today's a very special day for you, isn't it?" his mother asked sweetly.

"It certainly is, mom!" Prince Endymion cried out joyously as he ran up to his mother. She got down on one knee and he hugged her fiercely. She embraced him with equal passion.

"You better let go before I lose my ability to breathe," she cried out hoarsely.

He let go and said apologetically, "Sorry mom! I was just so happy to see you."

"It's okay honey!" she said sympathetically then she put him in a playful headlock and gave him a nugy.

Endymion wiggled around trying to free himself from her friendly grasp. "MOM! STOP IT!! PLEASE!!!"

In response to his plea, she let go of him. "Sorry!" she replied sarcastically then added with a smirk, "Now we're even."

"Yeah! Whatever mom!" he told her as he put his hand on the back of his head trying to get his ruffed up hair back in place. "Actually, we're not even. Remember that just a few moments ago when you nearly scared me half to death?"

"Umm...yes! Okay! You're right! We're not even."

"So, since you're ahead of me by one, I still have to get even with you."

"By..."

"Oh...I don't know yet but I'll think of something and it'll come your way when you least expect it," he said with a grin spreading from ear to ear plastering itself on Endymion's face.

Queen Gaia crossed her arms and frowned while replying coolly, "I'll be awaiting it."

"Well, don't wait too long. It shall come before the day ends."

She laughs. "That's fine." Then she goes down on one knee again while opening up her arms to him. "Now lets say we start the day anew, shall we? Now come give your mother another hug but be gentler this time." Endymion went over to his mother and hugged her gently. "There! That's better," she said as she padded and rubbed his back with her hand. After they released one another, Gaia gazes at her son's facial appearance, while putting her hand on his forehead to push some of his hair back. Then suddenly tears spring from Gaia's eyes.

"Mommy! Why are your eyes leaking?" Endymion asked curiously.

At the sincerity in his voice, Gaia smiled because of it. It was a natural reaction not to. "Honey! Mommy's eyes are just crying tears of joy." She racked her hand through his hair again. "My oh my! Look at how much you've grown. You'll grow up to be a fine handsome lad one day." Then she brings her hand to lightly read on his cheek. "You definitely have your father's eyes."

"What about my hair?"

"Well, despite the hair colour, the texture is unmistakable. It definitely distinguishes the difference. You have my hair. There's no doubt about it." She racked her hand through his hair again while saying, "It's so soft and silky just like mine." Then she hugs him fiercely. "You're my little boy and I'm so proud of you. I just want you to know that. Okay? I'm so happy that you're not becoming like your father. And I hope you know that I'll always be there for you. To protect you and comfort you. Even when I'm not around, you can always turn to me just by thinking of me. Okay? Good!" She lets go of him and grips both of his hands in hers. "Anyway, enough of this! Isn't this a special day for you?"

"Yeah! My birthday!" he cried out cheerfully.

"Well then! Shall we celebrate it?"

"Yeah!"

Gaia gets up and takes Endymion's hand in her own. "Come on! Lets go then!" She took him by the hand and led him away from the dining hall.

The both of them went out together to celebrate his birthday. They first started out by packing a picnic together in the kitchen then they both saddled up 2 horses and went horseback riding together. After riding for over 2 hours, they stopped to have lunch under a shady tree neighbouring a stream. That's where they tied up their horses beside a branch and had their picnic that they packed. Afterwards, they both took a leisurely walk by the stream and, when they went back to retrieve the horses, it was around 3 o'clock. They packed everything up and proceeded to leave.

"Mom! Why didn't dad come with us?" Endymion asked while riding back on his horse.

"Well...um...because...you father was too busy at that particular moment. I didn't want to bother him by asking."

Endymion hung his head down in shame. "Mom! You don't have to keep making excuses for him. It's easy to see that he obviously doesn't want to spend any time with me. He doesn't love me anymore!"

"Honey! That's not true."

"Yes, it is!" Endymion shouted back as his head shot up and he glared at his mother.

Queen Gaia took her eyes off her son and looked down at the road. "This is neither the time nor the place to discuss this. If it bothers you that much then confront your father about it."

"Fine! I will," he said sternly as he nicked his horse to go faster. They both rode the rest of the way home back in complete silence.

As they returned home, Queen Gaia was the first to speak. "Look! I don't want you to stay mad at me forever. Can we just put this behind us and enjoy the rest of your birthday?" Prince Endymion remained silent. "Please! Forgive me! I'm sorry!" she pleaded to him while dismounting her horse. Shortly after, he followed suit.

"Ugh! Okay! I forgive you! But please stop lying every time when it comes to father. I know the truth. It's so obvious to see."

"Then why do you continue to ask when you already know the truth?"

"Uh...umm...ummm...I...don't know!" he stuttered. 'Wow! That's deep,' he thought astonishingly.

"Got ya there, didn't I?" she asked triumphantly.

"Yep!"

"And I know why you keep asking me when you know the truth."

"You do."

"Yes, I do. You keep denying the truth and so you hope to hear a lie in order to make you feel better. You seek to find the person you want your father to be so you can't except who he really is. But when you do hear the lies, the frustration has built up inside you that you're so sick and tired of hearing them because you finally realize that it's not the answer to your problem of denying the truth. So now, you have to finally find another solution to the problem. Talking can sometimes be the best medicine. But there are also some other methods as well."

"I see. Then I'll talk to him the next chance I get."

"Good! Well, since we got this out in the open, why don't we finish this discussion over some birthday cake. I had the cook bake your favourite, double chocolate cake with chocolate icing. Mmm...sounds yummy, doesn't it?" His face lit up merrily at the mention of chocolate. "Then lets go some, alright?"

He nodded in agreement. "Yeah! Lets go!"

They both settled the horses back into the stables and together made their way to the dining hall where a gigantic feast was set out for them. Endymion ran over to the table and stared obsessively at his birthday cake. Then he started drooling at the site of it.

"Dinner first. Dessert after. But first, lets go get ready and clean up for dinner." Endymion reluctantly complied and went to wash up. They both finished and came back to sit down at the table to start eating dinner. In the middle of dinner, Gaia asked her son, "Does they way your father treat you nowadays bother you a lot?"

"Yes! Dad is never nice to me anymore. Even though my memory is very vague. I think I remember him being nice to me several times some time ago. Now most of the time, he simply ignores me. When he does pay attention, he just acts so cold. Even though you say that he does love me, I don't feel like he does. I mean, when I'm around him, I don't feel any love from him towards me anymore. Not like the way he use to anyway. He's different now somehow. He's causes me nothing but pain nowadays. Why is he like this mother?"

"First of all, I want you to know that he wasn't always like that. I'm glad that you've noticed that about him." Sighs "He was a nice person once, towards you, me, and everyone else. You were just too young to remember that very well. I'm sorry that all you have to remember him by, of once being a kind caring father towards you, are vague memories. He mysteriously changed 2 months after your fourth birthday. Very strange yet pitiful. But despite that, I still love your father and probably always will since I'm still hung up on who he once was." Tears start to form in her eyes as she said that then she hung her head low to hide the tears she so desperately needed to shed.

"I understand mom! You can't make him change and he'll never do so voluntarily." His mother looked up at him in astonishment revealing the tears she'd been shedding clearly evident on her face. No words were needed between them for the expressions on their faces spoke far more than enough words between them. They both smiled warmly at each other in complete understanding.

It was 5 o'clock when they returned home and 5:15 when they started to eat dinner. When they were done eating, it was 6 then they moved to the dessert. Endymion went crazy for his birthday cake and kept on mentioning how good it tasted to him. When they finished, Endymion was a sloppy mess with chocolate nearly sticking everywhere on him from head to toe especially all over his face. Then an idea surfaced in his mind and he grinned evilly. He got up from his chair and walked around the table to where his mother was seated.

His mother asked him, "Endymion! Look at the fine mess you made on yourself. Anyway, you look troubled. Are you okay?"

Endymion nodded then proceeded to ask her, "Mom! Can you get up for a moment? Please!"

"Sure sweetie!" She complied, with a puzzled expression on her face, wondering what he was up to. Suddenly he rushed forward enveloping his mother in a fierce hug. What is this for?" she asked cautiously.

As he buried his face in her dress, he said, "Thank you! Thank you for everything. The picnic, the ride, our walk, and what we talked about..." then he turned his head upwards to look at his mother, "but most of all, thank you for my double chocolate birthday cake with chocolate icing. It was sooo delicious. Absolutely yummy! And also thanx for making my birthday so special."

Queen Gaia smiled tenderly down towards her son with him returning the smile with a smug one of his own. Then Gaia let go of her son and said, "Well, I'm glad that you feel that way but mommy has to go to clean herself off right now. You too."

"I know. That's the other thing." He grinned mischievously.

"What?" she asked with panic in her voice.

"My revenge, remember? Now, since it's complete, we're both even."

"Oh!" She giggled. "I see. Yes, we are both even now," she smirked.

Then they both left to clean up themselves off. Endymion left feeling pleased with himself. This day had gone so well for him so far that he started to wonder what to expect the remainder of this evening. So why, when his mother left the scene, did she have a sinking feeling that something terrible was still going to happen tonight? Anyway, after they finished, they rejoined back in the dinning hall and the clock struck 7. But before either one had a chance to speak to one another, King Darius, Endymion's father, came stomping into the room. 'He never changes, does he?' she mused to herself. He walked right pass them, ignoring them both. Then her face dropped and she just stared at him with a sad yet hopeful expression etched across her features. As Endymion watched his father aimlessly walk by, he frowned because of it. Then Darius stopped dead in his tracks and turned around to glare down at his son.

"Don't you have something to say to me?" Endymion asked angrily.

"I have nothing to say to you, son, " Darius replied detestably.

"How dare you call me SON when you don't even know me. Don't you know what today is?" Endymion shot back bitterly.

"Its August 3. What's so special about today?" he asked coolly.

Endymion balled his hands into fists and glared at his father with a cold expression on his face. But like he told himself this morning, he wasn't going to let anyone or anything ruin it for him. "It's my birthday today. I've turned six."

"Oh! That's all?" Darius asked uncaringly.

"Yes! That's all!" Endymion replied sternly. 'That's all! Is that all you can say?' Endymion thought to himself. He stood his ground with his eyes about to water but he wouldn't show weakness in front of his father. He wouldn't cry so he used all of his strength to hold back his tears. King Darius smiled at this. And Gaia thought that him smiling was very odd.

"Well then, if there's nothing else, Happy birthday to you son." He glanced over at his wife and said, "Enjoy the rest of the evening with your mother." Then he looks back at his son. "Now if you'll both excuse me, I'm very busy so I must be going." He departed leaving them both to sort through their mixed feelings.

Gaia clearly felt heart broken while Endymion was left feeling with a mixture of sadness, anger, and hate. But they did put their feelings aside and enjoyed the rest of the evening. Endymion received many gifts that night but he did not receive anything from his father. It was typical yet sad. But Endymion still intended to sleep that night with a smile on his face because of the bonding he did with his mother.

As they both retired for the night, Queen Gaia was about to have an encounter with her husband, King Darius. She was sitting in front of her dresser and mirror brushing her long silky black hair awaiting the arrival of her, once dear but now cold hearted, husband. As she blankly stared at herself in the mirror, it was clear to see that her face was locked in a sad expression. Then she started thinking to herself, 'What happened? To us and everything? But most of all, what happened to him? He's changed and I would like to know why. And look at the state I'm in. It's terrible. I look like a sack of potatoes. My hair is a mess, my eyes are puffy, and my body feels tired. I'm like this every night that it's starting to become a nightly routine. I can't live like this anymore. But what can I do? Nothing! Absolutely nothing! Just sit here and take it. Well, at least it's not like he's physically or verbally abusing Endymion and me. He's often doesn't have a temper. He's just ignoring us, which is physiological abuse. It's not that bad. The other types of abuse are way worse. Right? Anyway, I still wish he could just stop causing is all this pain. Why does he have to be so mean, selfish, and inconsiderate? What happened to the man I fell in love with? Now all he does these days is irritate me. Especially with the way he treats Endymion and me nowadays. He aggravates me so much with his arrogance. At he last statement, she frowned and her face contorted into an angry expression. Soon after, Darius walked into the room and gave her the silent treatment so she spoke first as she continued to brush her hair. "Why?" was all she asked.

"Why what?" he asked dumbfounded.

"You know damn well what I mean!" she countered.

"Honestly! I don't what you're talking about," he replied convincingly.

"I don't believe you!" she said angrily.

"Believe what you want but..."

She suddenly interrupted him by standing up abruptly, out of her chair, slamming her hairbrush on the dresser and turning sharply around to give him an icy glare. "Don't you DARE play stupid with me!" she practically yelled.

The king was quite surprised to witness such an event. Normally, his wife was a shy flower. She was not timid but she wasn't the type to meddle in other people's affairs and stuff like that. She usually was a quiet reserve person that anyone would have pegged her to be the type to never develop a temper. He'd never seen his wife this angry before. Maybe a little irritated at times by little things or really annoyed at something but never in his life had he seen her this extremely angry. She even swore which is something she's never ever done before. But guessing with the right buttons pushed and even as shy and gentle as she was, she possibly was capable of such distraught behavior. So in turn, he retaliated with, "Don't you dare raise your voice towards me in such a manner or else..."

She interjected with, "Don't you dare threaten me and tell me to shut up. Not when I have very good reason to." Then she took a few steps towards him and shouted, "You forgot our son's birthday, for crying out loud!"

King Darius calmed down and chuckled then said, "Oh! Is that all you're worried about? I thought it was something more serious."

Queen Gaia could only look at her husband with a stunned expression on her face. She couldn't believe what he was saying. "Excuse me! You forgot your own son's birthday. Both he and myself were rather upset about this and still are."

"It's not that much of a big deal."

"Yes, it is!"

"No, it isn't! And before you say another word, shut your trap and let me explain."

"Why should I?"

"My patience is growing very thin. Just shut up woman and listen."

Queen Gaia was going to protest at that last remark but decided against it as to not aggravate him any further. Instead she threw her arms and hands up in the air and sarcastically said, "Then by all means, please do. And can't wait to hear your so-called explanation."

"Thank you finally! Now I'll tell you it isn't that much of a big deal because, even though I forgot, you both reminded me. Remember? Or have you forgotten? I said 'Happy Birthday' to him. So what's the big deal?"

"Well first of all, you should not have been needed to be reminded that it was Endymion's birthday. You should have remembered that on your own. But worst of all, you didn't even get him a gift. You should have seen his face fall when he finished opening all the presents. He told me that he was expecting to receive something from you. Anything from you! And he was deeply hurt because he didn't receive anything from you."

"Well maybe he shouldn't get his hopes up."

"What's that suppose to mean?"

"You know damn well what I mean Gaia. When he knows that's he not going to receive anything from me then why should he get his hopes up at all. Hoping is wishful thinking and is useless. It doesn't solve anything. Not when the world we live in is a harsh one to reside in. So why try hoping at all? I've given up on it long ago." Gaia was about to protest but didn't have time because Darius quickly continued with, "You now know what I mean since I explained it to you so don't you dare argue with me when it's futile. Anyway, it's not important. If it will make you both happy, I'll give Endymion something tomorrow. Okay?"

"Yes!" she answered hesitantly with a stunned expression on her face.

"Good! Now if you'll excuse me, I'm tired so I'm going to go get ready for bed." He left for the bathroom to get ready for bed.

Queen Gaia crossed her arms then tilted her head to the side and cocked an eyebrow. She wondered we he was acting so weird. 'Why is he acting so strange? Okay! So perhaps that was the wrong word to use. But he normally doesn't give in anymore. He use to but that was before he changed. He's not a sweet caring man anymore. Not the one I fell in love with anyway.' Then she tilted her head back into place and started to understand something better. 'Maybe this is a sign or something that he's actually willing to change back into who he once was.' Then she smiles contently and unfolded her arms. 'Well, I really hope that's what it is. That he's really going to change back into who he use to be. Well, I'll just have to wait and see.' Then she turned around and walked back over towards the dresser to check herself over in front of the mirror. She straightened herself out and said, "Good! I don't look like a total mess anymore." Satisfied with herself, she reties the string of her robe then she yawns and stretches. "Boy! I'm so beyond tired. I'm absolutely exhausted, especially after that event. Time for me to go to bed." She goes to her side of the bed then tucks herself under the covers and falls asleep immediately with a smile on her face.

After a lengthily time, King Darius emerges from the bathroom and walks over to his wife. He looks at her and brushes his hand lightly against her cheek and thinks, 'Ah! My darling wife! It's not your fault. Never think that, okay?' He smiles fondly and continues with, 'I know you want your dear old husband back but I'm afraid that can never happen. I've changed and it's for good I'm afraid. I'm sorry! I cannot be who you want and need me to be anymore. I'll never be the same again. Remember that's it's not your fault, it's mine. It's a decision I made and, in the end, I'll have to pay the price for it.' Then he speaks ever so softly, "So all I ask of you is to always be there for our son and to protect him from all harm and evil. But most of all, please protect him from me." As he slowly takes his hand away from Gaia's cheek and puts it at his side, she stirs in her sleep and mumbles something that he can't quite hear. But luckily, she does not wake up. Then he goes to bed as well.

The following day, he kept his word and gave his son a gift. When he first announced it to his son, Endymion was so ecstatic to receive the news. Queen Gaia was quite happy to hear such news as well. However, when Endymion received the gift, it was a whole different matter. Gaia's face fell while Endymion's face turned into one of disappointment when his father presented him with a sword. That was Endymion's gift from his father.

'How typical! I give up! He'll never change,' Gaia thought miserably to herself as she folded her arms.

"Thanx dad! It's exactly what I wanted," Endymion said sarcastically. 'NOT!' his mind screamed.

'I know you may not really like it but, in my state of mind, you must forgive me my son,' Darius thought solemnly to himself. Then he told his son, "Good son! I think you're ready to receive a gift such as this. I think you're finally ready to learn hand to hand combat. I'll have lessons set up for you very soon. You'll train under the command of captain of the guards. It'll improve your character. Make you become more of a man. Sounds good, eh?" It was all he could say but no one was thrilled to hear it.

'He couldn't be more inconsiderate. A child such as Endymion's age shouldn't be playing with real swords and learning how to kill. Okay! So maybe wooden swords are a different story but he should really be with kids his own age playing games, sports, and doing things that are harmless. Doesn't he understand that? When will he ever stop causing us so much pain?' Those were Gaia's final thoughts on the matter.

And so Endymion pretended to graciously accept the gift while he secretly dreaded it while Gaia continued to wish that he could change though knowing it would never happen. So that's how things were fated to happen. The damage was truly done and the pain was irreversible. Once things were set in stone, they could never be changed. Or could they?

**Date:_ July 30, 2002_**


End file.
